Reducing costs is something that’s on the mind of most businesses. Often these costs are reduced in areas such as product design or raw materials for the products themselves. But reducing packaging costs is something that can be quite effective in saving you money if given a little thought.

Packaging has a lot of functions, but its main purpose is to contain the product and protect it during storage and transit. Through knowing your product well and what its likley to come up against during transit, you can start reducing packaging costs without having to compromise on its main function.

Choosing the Right Products

Picking the right sized cardboard box can help you in reducing packaging costs significantly as larger boxes naturally cost more. After all there is no need to use a box that’s 500mm x 500mm if the product is only 100mm x 100mm (that might be a bit of an extreme example, but you get the idea). Not only will a more appropriate sized box be cheaper and fit for purpose, but it will be cheaper to post as well. Read more on how here

Once you’ve chosen right size of box, you need to think about the level of protection your product needs. By evaluating your current packaging needs you may find that a single wall box with some light void fill material such as void filling paper, is more than sufficient to support and transport your product as opposed to a triple wall box with bubble wrap. With a maximum weight capacity of 10kg, single wall boxes are a sturdy product that can save a growing business costs on postage and excessive void fill material. So, save yourself the hassle of using an over specked box and evaluate where you can cut back without compromising on protection.

Choosing the Brand

A lot of packaging costs can be reduced if you take advantage of non-branded products.

For example, a davpack gold bubble envelope costs just £18.14 for 100 compared to £36.98 for the branded equivalent, whilst still offering a great level of protection. That’s quite a big difference, whether you sell online as a part time hobby or whether you are shipping thousands of products a month.

Increasing Efficiency

Another way to reduce packaging costs is to look for products that are faster to pack and seal such as crash-lock boxes and fast seal postal boxes. It may seem paradoxical that these products often cost more than their traditional counterparts, but they make up for it in reducing labour costs by being quicker to assemble and seal. While it may not be an effective method of reducing packaging costs for a small-scale business, for a large company with a busy packaging line it can go a long way in increasing output.

Going Green

Consumers are increasingly showing support for sustainable products, which is getting passed on to businesses and suppliers. Using products that have been recycled can reduce packaging costs as they are usually less expensive than packaging made from virgin material. On top of that, reusing packaging where appropriate can reduce the amount you need to buy in. So, if you can reuse it then why not?

Buying

Companies can often get generous discounts on supplies when buying in bulk and packaging is no exception to this. By buying more in one go it can often work out cheaper per pack than buying individually. However, be mindful to not go overboard and buy more than you need as it may end up sitting around taking up space and gathering dust, making any savings you may have got from buying in bulk irrelevant.

Overall there are many ways for companies big and small to reduce their packaging costs by getting to know themselves and their products well. With careful evaluation and finding the right balance for you, you can reduce packaging costs and maximise your profits without having to compromise on what matters most.

If you have any questions, feel free to call on 01332 821200 and speak to one of our advisors for more support on how to reduce your packaging cost.

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Remy Courtois

Remy has been a contributing author since late 2011, when he arrived at Davpack from a major packaging competitor. Originally a product buyer with many years of specialist knowledge in the fields of custom cardboard boxes and corrugated products, Remy now combines his purchasing and literary skills to maximum effect in our marketing team as a content writer. Born to French and British parents in Nottingham, Remy had a bilingual upbringing and has lived for the past twelve years just South of Paris. He presently commutes twice a month to France but is in the process of re-locating to his birthplace. Davpack

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